New York may approve Medical Marijuana with Restrictions

Posted by Sagar Satapathy on March 31, 2015.

While 23 States in the United States have already legalized medical marijuana and three have approved the recreational use of pot, New York is moving forward with a plan to legalize medical marijuana. However, the legislation will come up with a number of restrictions, it is reported. The Department of Health is working on making things better for the drug users.

The New York Times reports that the new bill would allow only 20 medical dispensaries, run by five organizations, to be established throughout the state. That means, many patients may not have access to medical marijuana, as they can't find out a store in their vicinity.

In addition, only patients suffering from a list of 10 'life-threatening' conditions, would be allowed to use medical marijuana. They include multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, ALS and AIDS. Patients suffering from diseases other than the listed 10, won't have any access to medical marijuana even though they might need it.

The bill also has a new definition of "terminally ill" patients, who can avail medical marijuana. Only those patients with a life expectancy of one year or less can be termed as "terminally ill" and will be allowed to use medical marijuana for their treatment. That would prevent the elderly people from accessing the drug. The law also prohibits the smoking of medical marijuana. It can be administered only as an individual dose of raw or concentrated form of pot.

New York's medical marijuana law should go into effect by 2016 if it is approved during the ballot initiative.